balenaEtcher Alternatives for Windows
There are many alternatives to balenaEtcher for Windows if you are looking for a replacement. The best Windows alternative is Rufus, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to balenaEtcher and many of them are available for Windows so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Windows alternatives to balenaEtcher are Ventoy, UNetbootin, YUMI exFAT and Win32 Disk Imager.
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balenaEtcher alternatives are mainly Bootable USB Creators but may also be Disk Imaging Tools or Disk Cloning Tools. Other popular filters includes Android Tablet + Create bootable USB. Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of balenaEtcher.- Bootable USB Creator
- Free • Open Source
- 1487 likes68 Rufus alternatives
Formats USB drives to FAT, NTFS, exFAT, and more, while creating bootable USBs from diverse ISOs. Supports MS-DOS/FreeDOS with no external files and offers BIOS or UEFI mode, including bad block check. Ideal for systems lacking an OS or flashing BIOS and lightweight, ad-free.
Rufus VS balenaEtcher
Is Rufus a good alternative to balenaEtcher? - 326 likes47 Ventoy alternatives
Ventoy is an open source tool to create bootable USB drive for ISO files. With ventoy, you don't need to format the disk again and again, you just need to copy the iso file to the USB drive and boot it.
Ventoy VS balenaEtcher
Is Ventoy a good alternative to balenaEtcher?Comments about Ventoy as an Alternative to balenaEtcher
AasbalenaEtcher had some privacy issue in the past. Ventoy doesn't "phone home". Why an USB image creator needs to send some data out anyway?
4Ventoy only needs a one time setup and all bootable ISOs are just placed in your USB drive. Also your USB drive keeps being a storage device when you're in your OS
0Jeremy LeikVentoy is a great tool. I had used YUMI extensively before Ventoy came out. What is great about Ventoy is the cross-platform support and the fact that your ISO image stay intact on your USB stick. Being able to have a large 256GB USB stick with Ventoy on it also gives it an edge against tools like Balena Etcher (one image per USB) or Rufus (ISO images are not intact).
As a bonus, Ventoy can create USB sticks that will work with BOTH UEFI and BIOS.
2 - 747 likes56 UNetbootin alternatives
Cross-platform tool for making bootable USB and Live USB drives, featuring a built-in downloader for Linux ISO images and rescue disks, supporting BSD and various utilities. No installation required, it runs directly and offers compatibility and community support for many distributions.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application type
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- PortableApps.com
DiscontinuedLast commit to the repository was on Jun 28, 2023, and latest version is from Feb 4, 2021.
UNetbootin VS balenaEtcher
Is UNetbootin a good alternative to balenaEtcher?Comments about UNetbootin as an Alternative to balenaEtcher
I cannot choose Winshit 10
2It doesn't appear to just write images to disk
0 - 282 likes47 YUMI exFAT alternatives
The YUMI exFAT (Your Universal Multiboot Installer) media creation tool can be used to automatically create an exFAT bootable USB flash drive containing multiple operating systems, antivirus utilities, disc cloning, diagnostic tools, and more.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application type
Platforms
- Windows
- PortableApps.com
- Wine
- WineBottler
YUMI exFAT VS balenaEtcher
Is YUMI exFAT a good alternative to balenaEtcher? - 84 likes45 Win32 Disk Imager alternatives
A utility that can write a raw backup image of your hard drive to a removable device or vice versa.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Platforms
- Windows
Win32 Disk Imager VS balenaEtcher
Is Win32 Disk Imager a good alternative to balenaEtcher?Comments about Win32 Disk Imager as an Alternative to balenaEtcher
TheDcoderA lot smaller and more native to the Windows platform than Etcher
1Win32 Disk Imager, despite its name, does not "create" disk images: it only writes/mounts pre-existing .img files to flash storage.
-4 - 175 likes45 Universal USB Installer alternatives
Universal USB Installer is a Live Linux USB Creator that allows you to choose from a selection of Linux Distributions to put on your USB Flash Drive. The Universal USB Installer is easy to use. Simply choose a Live Linux Distribution, the ISO file, your Flash Drive and, Click...
Universal USB Installer Features
Universal USB Installer VS balenaEtcher
Is this a good alternative to balenaEtcher? - 23 likes18 USBImager alternatives
USBImager is a really really simple GUI application that writes compressed disk images to USB drives and creates backups.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Raspberry Pi
USBImager VS balenaEtcher
Is USBImager a good alternative to balenaEtcher?Comments about USBImager as an Alternative to balenaEtcher
rescuezillaUSBImager is a 300 kilobyte download compared to balenaEtcher's 80+ megabyte. They're both cross-platform (Windows/macOS/Linux). The reason is USBImager is a native app while balenaEtcher is an Electron app.
balenaEtcher is still a bit more user-friendly, but USBImager is by far the best cross-platform alternative right now.
1docampoangelIs like etcher but installed occupies 508,43 KiB in disk, instead 500MB of spyware and electron crap.
1prog_ukSmall, simple and does everything it needs to without any unnecessary bells and whistles.
0 - 124 likes45 LinuxLive USB Creator alternatives
LiLi USB Creator is a free software for Windows that allows you to create a bootable Live USB key with a Linux on it.
DiscontinuedSite says app is no longer maintained.
LinuxLive USB Creator VS balenaEtcher
Is this a good alternative to balenaEtcher?
Comments about Rufus as an Alternative to balenaEtcher
Probably the best software to burn an OS image on a USB drive if you're using Windows.
I am convinced BalenaEtcher is recommended by people who have never used it. I have never even witnessed it successfully complete a write. Rufus has always worked.
It works best and has features needed most.